Friday 12 October 2007

I'm trying to get into a regular schedule here which would allow me to post at least a couple of times a week, but it's been a bit difficult to figure out. The main problem is that any down time I have, I feel guilty if I use it for anything not house cleaning related. After a few of weeks of buying into that whole 'let the dishes pile up and don't worry about the state of the house' business, the house is now a disaster area (although we did keep on top of the dishes). It doesn't help that Joe and I have generous friends and family, so there was a huge pile of things that people gave the kid piling up in our living room that we didn't have time to put away. (Also if anyone needs a baby themed gift bag, I may have one or two kicking around!) At least she stays quiet for a little while when I put her down to do things - even when she's awake.
We've also been managing to get out of the house at least once a day lately, even if it's just for a walk around the block. She really doesn't like the stroller or the car seat though. There's usually lots of screaming when she gets put into one of them. Eventually it subsides and she falls asleep, but she can have some real staying power with her crying. As a result, we spend a lot of time with her in her sling. (hm, I should get a good picture of her in her sling.) With that, she just cries for a couple of minutes before she quiets down. I've got to build up my stamina with it though.

We're still having issues with the breast feeding, or rather with how much milk I have. It turned out that at her 1 month check up, the doctor was a little concerned with how little weight she had gained. Even though she was healthy in every other respect, she was only averageing a weight gain of around 16g a day since the 2 week visit and the healthy range is 15-30g. So she was in there, but very low on the scale. The doctor suggested we go back to supplementing with formula. Not a lot, just one ounce a day when my milk supply was lowest - but pump during that time so the milk supply could build up. (This really made my mother happy because she was convinced I was starving her granddaughter.) I also went back to the lactation consultant who helped me a lot - more mentally than physically. She also reassured me that Zoë was in fact growing and developing well. When we went back the next week she was up to 8lb 1oz and had averaged 23grams a day that week. I have one more appointment with the lactation consultant on Wednesday for another weight check, But I can tell she's getting heavy and she's starting to fit some of the sleepers she was swimming in a couple weeks ago.

Here are some pictures - weeks 3, 4 and 5




4 comments:

Unknown said...

Zoë is a adorable and entertaining. You and Zoë make the best supervisors ever!!!!

Craftygrrrl said...

She looks wonderful!

That first few months takes a lot of getting used to! Don't worry, you'll find your grove soon and might I suggest a slow cooker and grocery gateway! Those two things combined made my first few months after having Abi so much easier!

Sandi Purl said...

what a cutie! she seems so loooong. thanks for sharing.

Ms. Wilderness said...

She looks gorgeous!
Fennel helps with milk output :)
Hang tough.